Garment-fitting device



(No Model.) v

J. WEIR. GARMENT FITTING DEVICE.

- No. 594,666. Patented Nov. 30, 1897.

WITNESSES NVENTDR tries.

@ATENT I JOHNIVEIR, OF DAYTON, OHIO.

GARMENT-FITTING DEVICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 594,666, dated November 30, 1897.

A li ti fil d March 5, 1897. Serial No. 626,135. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J OHNWVEIR, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dayton, in the county of lllontgomery and State of Ohio,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tailors Fitting and TestingDevices; and 1 do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the 7 same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention consists in a measuring and fitting device for tailors, and is an improve ment and simplification of the means for measuring and fitting garments shown and described in United States Letters Patent granted to myself March 8, 1887, No. 358,903. The means set forth in said patent have been found objectionable in practice in several respects. First, a certain amount of instruction has been found necessary in introducing the system; secondly, the possession of several measuring garments or jackets to be used only for obtaining a fit, in connection with separate patterns, was necessary in order to equip one with the means for doing the work, and, thirdly, the expense necessary for the equipment.

It is therefore the object of this invention to avoid the use of separate measuring jackets and pat-terns and to considerably reduce the expense necessary to the adoption of the measuring and fitting feature of my invention.

To this end the invention has reference to parts hereinafter described and claimed.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a top view of a coat ready to be tried on and to which my measuring and fitting device is applied. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the back of said garment, showing my measuring and fitting device applied thereto. Fig. 3 is a detached enlarged plan view of the device as applied to the shoulders.

As shown in the drawings, the body portion A of the coat is sewed or basted up the sides B B, and it may be sewed or basted at any other points other than where the backseam is to be subsequentlyformed and at the shoulders. These parts of the garment are goods.

left free for the purpose of obtaining an accurate adjustment and fit of the garment by the use of my'device. As the coat is shown in the drawings it is in a try-on condition. The vertical edges a b of the material forming. the back are overlapped, as shown in full and dotted lines, as are also the edges 0 d of the material forming the shoulders.

G designates a separate and detachable pad of cloth or flexible material which is basted to th underlappin gportion d of the goods forming the shoulders and to which are permanently attached a series of elastic bands or cords 6. These bands have attached to them engaging clamps f, that engage with the overlapping edges c, and the portion of the goods forming the shoulder is thus flexibly held together and the garment thereby maintained in a position to be adjusted to fit the shoulders and body. The shoulder adjustment is obtained by shifting or adjusting either of the parts 0 and d, or both of them, inwardly or outwardly from or to the neck and armholes and marking with chalk the positions assumed by the overlapping part c of the The elastic bands 6 will sufliciently yield to permit of any movement of said goods and will at the same time hold said goods in position.

The fitting or adjustment of the coat to the body is principally to give it a proper hang to or from the body. This is done by balancing the .coat upon the shoulders by shifting the position of the device 0 rearwardly or forwardly, as may be necessary. In this movement the elastic bands will expand or contract and allow the coat or material to adjust itself to the body and shoulders without further effort on the part of the operator. The cloth is then marked with chalk at such places as may be necessary by the expansion or con traction of the goods. The back strip 0, with the attached elastic cords or bands e and engaging clamps f, constitute similar means for obtaining a proper width of the body of .the garment.

It should be stated that when the devices are first applied they are so attached that some expansion of the elastic bands will occur when the coat is tried on or when said garment is adjusted to a proper position to fit the body, and the extent of said expansion,

as indicated by the position of the goods, is obtained by marking the said goods with chalk, as previouslystated. This elastic connection at the shoulders of the garment thus forms a balancing or flexible bearing on the shoulders for the garment, from which any desirable adjustment maybe had-of the said garment to and from the body, so that a perfect-fitting coat may be had without the use of tape or measuring lines.

In my system as described in the patent hereinbefore referred to a try-on jacket approximating a desired fit was essential, and upon which were permanently attached a series of elastic bands. A yielding of said bands when the garment was tried on would indicate upon a series of tape-measures the desired increase or decrease in the goods in order to obtainafit. The pattern of said jacket was then used for obtaining a pattern to cut the goods by. A subsequent trying on of the garment was not practical in said system, and it therefore happened that a perfect fit was not always obtained. This is entirely obviated hy providing a fitting and adjusting device in a form that may be applied to the coat for fitting it preparatory to completing it, which will always-insure a perfect fit.

In obtaining a fit according to the present invention what is termed a proportionalpattern is first used to cut the goods by. This does away with what might be termed a proportionate jacket, as used by the other in presence of two witnesses.

system. The cloth is then basted or sewed together at such parts as do not interfere with the measuring and fitting of the garment.

It will be understood that a single specimen of the present invention may be used to try on garments regardless of the sizes of persons, while in the old system a try-on jacket had to be first obtained that approximated a fit in each case.

Having fully described my invention, I claim- A device for obtaining a fit in tailor-made coats, comprising a pad C of flexible material; a series of elastic bands 6, having one end permanently attachedto said pad; a series of engaging clamps attached to the other ends of said elastic bands, the said flexible pad being adapted to a detachable connection with a portion of the underlapping edge of the goods,and the engaging clamps being adapted to a detachable connection with an adjacent overlapping edge of said goods, whereby a yielding connection is formed between the free or unsewed edges of said coat which enables an adjustment and fitting thereof, preparatory to the completion, of said garment, substantially as herein shown and described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature JOHN VEIR. \Vitucsses:

R. J. MOCARTY, WM. P. \VHiTNEY. 

